News

Rangers News

Game Notes: Rangers vs. New Jersey Devils

by
Staff Writer
/ New York Rangers

VS.

Tonight's Game

The Rangers face-off against the New Jersey Devils tonight at Madison Square Garden (7:30 p.m.), in the second game of a three-game homestand. The Blueshirts currently sit atop the Atlantic Division standings with a record of 22-12-3, and rank second in the Eastern Conference with 47 points. The Rangers enter tonight's contest having been defeated by the Capitals, 5-4, in overtime on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden, and have recorded a point in four of their last five games (3-1-1). Following tonight's contest, the Rangers will face-off against the New York Islanders on Monday, December 29, at Madison Square Garden (7:00 p.m.), to close out their three-game homestand. The Devils, 19-11-3, currently rank seventh in the Eastern Conference standings with 41 points, and have won three of their last five games.

Download complete game notes >>**(Adobe Acrobat Reader is required. Click here to download Acrobat Reader for free)Tune In Tonight!Tonight's game will be televised on MSG. You can also catch the radio broadcast on 1050 ESPN New York and on satellite radio at XM 208.

Rangers vs. Devils Pre-Game Notes

* The Rangers are 12-6-2 at home this season; The Devils have posted a 8-4-2 record in 14 road contests.

* The Rangers are 6-2-0 against the Atlantic Division this season; The Devils have posted a 7-5-1 record vs. Atlantic Division opponents this season.

* The Blueshirts have won their last five meetings vs. New Jersey at MSG, outscoring the Devils, 12-4, during the stretch.

* New York has tallied four goals in 19 power play opportunities (21.1%) in three games vs. New Jersey in the season series; The Rangers have surrendered just one goal to the Devils in 11 shorthanded chances (90.9%) this season.

* Henrik Lundqvist has recorded two shutouts in his last five contests vs. the Devils at home.

* The Blueshirts are 18-2-2 when tallying three or more goals, and 20-2-0 when holding opponents to two or fewer goals.

* Lundqvist has posted a 14-3-4 record, along with a 1.77 goals against average and two shutouts in 21 career regular season appearances vs. New Jersey.

* In the season series, Nikolai Zherdev leads the Rangers with three goals and seven points in three games, while his four assists are tied with Dan Girardi for first on the team.

* Chris Drury has registered 23 points (10 goals and 13 assists) in 30 career games vs. the Devils; Scott Gomez has notched 10 points (two goals and eight assists) in 10 career games vs. New Jersey; Nikolai Zherdev has recorded nine points (five goals and four assists) in six career contests vs. the Devils.

* Zherdev leads the team with nine multiple-point games this season, including one, four-point effort on December 12 at New Jersey; Drury ranks second on the Rangers with seven multiple-point games, including one hat trick on November 6 vs. Tampa Bay.

* Artem Anisimov, the Rangers' second round choice (54th overall) in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, has registered 12 goals and 17 assists for 29 points in 32 games with the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League (AHL) thisseason; Anisimov has tallied three points (one goal and two assists) in his last two contests to take over the team lead in points (29) and assists (17), and is tied for first on the club in goals (12).

* New York lists one former Devil on their roster; Scott Gomez (1999-00 to 2006-07).

* The Rangers have lost nine manpower games due to injury or illness this season.Highlights from HartfordFollow the progress of the Rangers' top prospects:

The Wolf Pack were back in action after a four-day Christmas break on Friday night, and suffered a 3-1 loss at Bridgeport (Islanders affiliate). The defeat was only the Pack’s second regulation loss in its last eight games (5-2-0-1). The Pack had headed into their Christmas break on a high note, coming back from a 3-1 deficit Sunday at home vs. Toronto (Maple Leafs affiliate) to post a 4-3 win. The Wolf Pack continues a stretch of seven of nine on the road by visiting Springfield (Edmonton affiliate) tonight (7:00), and the club will be in Lowell (New Jersey affiliate) on Sunday (4:00).